A group of Guelph-Eramosa residents seeking more information about a quarry application near Rockwood instead ended up getting a stern warning and a lecture on process from several councillors on Monday night.
Rockwood resident Dan Kennaley in particular, who was representing about 20 members of the Concerned Residents Coalition (CRC) in the gallery, drew the ire of council with one of his requests.
Kennaley asked the township to back the CRC’s demand for more information on correspondence between the Grand River Conservation Authority (GRCA) and James Dick Construction, which has proposed the extraction of 700,000 tonnes annually (for about 20 years) of sand, gravel and dolostone from a 39-hectare (100 acre) property at the corner of 6th Line and Highway 7.
Kennaley said he is concerned about “the secret information exchange between the GRCA and the applicant and the tendency for this process to undermine the requirement that the planning process be an open and transparent one.”
Mayor Chris White said he has a problem with referring to that correspondence as secretive, adding council has already informed the CRC that questions about that correspondence, or the process, should be directed to the GRCA or Erin councillor John Brennan, the township’s representative on the GRCA board.
“This is not the township’s role. We are not the GRCA,” said White. He noted the township is awaiting the GRCA report, adding, “We’re not making a decision for a long time … there’s a process to follow.”
Councillor Doug Breen was more stern in his response to the request from Kennaley, who works as a planning director with Woolwich Township.
“You know how this process works,” Breen told Kennaley. He later added, “You and I both know you’re six months too early.”
Breen also scolded Kennaley, saying a planner should know better than “to go off half-cocked” with “over the top” and “inflammatory language” that will “get people all whipped into a frenzy” for no reason.
When Breen asked Kennaley to clarify if he was actually accusing the GRCA of not doing its job to protect the public trust, Kennaley said yes and added he stands by his “secret information” remarks.
“The township doesn’t have it, we haven’t seen it,” Kennaley said. He added “the process is seriously flawed” and again asked that the township join the CRC in asking for the information.
“We can’t do that,” replied a seemingly-frustrated councillor John Scott.
White then asked if the CRC has even requested the information from the GRCA, to which Kennaley replied “no.” The mayor said the CRC likely should ask for the correspondence before making allegations of secret information exchanges.
White, Scott and Breen all explained to Kennaley the township has to remain objective on the application until it has received all final reports.
The municipality, they stated, can not be seen to be interfering with the process, particularly if the case is appealed by either party to the Ontario Municipal Board.
“This is how the process works and you know it,” Breen said sternly to Kennaley, later adding, “You’ve got to give them time to do their jobs.”
GRCA spokesman Dave Schultz denied there is anything at all secretive about the process. He told the Advertiser the authority has already filed with the MNR and the township two letters commenting on the application, both of which are part of the public record.
“There’s a lot of back and forth throughout the process … This is very typical,” Schultz said. However, he noted the GRCA mostly converses with the ministry, unless the applicant has specific technical questions.
The other requests made by the CRC at the June 17 meeting were essentially approved by council, including:
– more information about Union Gas lines in the area (CAO Janice Sheppard said the company has “indicated some concerns” that will be detailed in a future report from Cuesta Planning Consultants); and
– the group will be allowed to ask questions when township engineer R.J Burnside and Associates presents its report on the application.
